Cheese balls are often considered a staple of holiday entertaining, but how about adapting the traditional recipes for spring and summer entertaining?

The traditional cheese ball consists of cream cheese, minced or grated onion, and one or two other type of flavorings such as cheddar cheese and Worcestershire sauce. But there are endless options when it comes to ingredients.

And of course, who doesn’t like the idea of a dessert cheese ball? That’s right: dessert. Chocolate is known to be irresistible, but how about blending in coconut, Nutella, or peanut butter? Success.

Lay out sliced eggplant and sprinkle with a generous amount of kosher salt. Set aside for 10-15 minutes while the salt draws out some of the moisture. Pat with paper towels.

In a large bowl, toss eggplant, squash, zucchini and bell pepper with marinade. Set aside.

When the grill is hot, rub it with a lightly-oiled rag and place eggplant slices on the grill. Let cook undisturbed for at least 3-4 minutes or until the eggplant begins to soften and grill marks appear along the bottom edges. Flip once and finish cooking on the remaining sides. Remove from grill and set aside.

Place remaining vegetables on the grill. Let cook undisturbed for 2-3 minutes before flipping. Flip only once and finish cooking on the remaining sides. Remove from grill.

Page 2 of 2 - Finely chop all vegetables and place in the bowl with the cheese and pesto. Mix to combine and season to taste with kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper and lemon juice. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Remove from the fridge and use a portion scoop or ice cream scoop to make individual cheese balls about the size of large walnuts. Roll in toasted pine nuts and refrigerate before serving.

NUTELLA CHEESE BALL

2 8-ounce cream cheese packages, room temperature

¾ cup Nutella spread

2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

¼ cup powdered sugar

½ tsp. kosher salt

1 cup hazelnuts, toasted and chopped

½ plain, good-quality chocolate bar, finely grated

Vanilla wafers, for serving

In a large mixing bowl, use an electric beater or stand mixer to beat together cream cheese, Nutella, pure vanilla extract, powdered sugar and kosher salt until very creamy, about 3-4 minutes. Chill the mixture for at least 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, toss together chopped hazelnuts and grated chocolate in a shallow dish.

Remove mixture from the refrigerator. Dip your hands in water and shape into two equal-sized balls. Immediately roll in hazelnuts and chocolate. Place onto a plate or dish lined with waxed paper and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving with vanilla wafers.

You can email Season Stepp, who writes about food and cooking for the Spartanburg Herald-Journal, at Season28@aol.com